arthritis and a pit bull help!!

[sbaker]

my baby is showing signs of arthritis this last month and im worried! shes gained a bunch of weight in the last 6 months when we welcomed a new rescue into the family, and has been slow and sluggish on our hikes, shes a pretty mellow dog, but usually way more excited about hikes! I attributed it to the heat and the weight gain, but for the last 2 weeks shes been limping on and off, seems like its her shoulder. I know i need to get her to the vet soon, but i was wondering if anyone else helped their dog with any particular diet items before i go pump her up with a bunch of meds the vet will give me. i try to give them raw meats , but its not 100% of the time, and they wont eat veggies or fruits.
thanks! oh..shes about 6.

[SharonC]

If she is eating grains, that could be part of the problem. If you have to feed 'dog food' along with the raw, there are grain free dog foods now.

Regarding joint issues, my 16 year little Yorkie has a back problem (long story - accidentally run over by big dog years ago). She woke up one morning a few years ago in severe pain and could not walk. Took her to my vet who diagnosed her with arthritis/spine degeneration, and I immediately rushed her to my chiropractor vet who had her walking and out of pain in 10 minutes. This was a few years ago, and she gets chiropractic adjustments every 2 or 3 months to keep her going, along with natural joint supplements. Also received a few acupuncture treatments in the beginning.

If I would have followed standard medical recommendation, I would have given her a drug that would have caused more health issues -especially liver or kidney failure (common with arthritis drugs).

[Xanadu]

Yes the vet stuff is very liver and other organ damaging. Try putting a capsule of turmeric or curcumin in a pill pocket (have them at petco) or some raw meat two or three times a day and when she adjusts to that add some capsules of glucosamine/chondroiten. Get her off of grains and onto raw veggies/fruits and raw boney (not large bones) meat (green not white tripe if you can get it). We grind our veggies and greens w a small amount of fruit in the food processor every day and add it to their chicken wings and green tripe. We throw in chicken livers 2 or 3 times a week. I get the "all natural" but not organic chicken and livers at Wild Oats along with organic veggies and fruits. I order the green tripe from greentripe.com I have three german shepherds.

[sbaker]

i can try the grain free, thanks for the idea! i want to do everything possible to keep her out of pain and away from vet meds, i figured if we can find alternatives, im pretty sure there are some for our pets...i wonder how many wild dogs get arthritis..i bet none.

[catdeveer]

take a look at www.auntjeni.com.

she has a natural supplement for arthritis in dogs that i've been giving mine since he was diagnosed with arthritis in the spine. i also give him msm.

it seems to help.

good luck!

cat

[sbaker]

thank you thank you everyone who replied!!

[Raw Mom]

Have you tried wheatgrass or the juice of wheatgrass? Even just getting the frozen cubes and letting him eat them or by the dropper full.

[chilove]

THe very best thing for her is to put her on a 100% raw diet ASAP. It doesn't matter if she won't eat veggies or fruit, dogs don't really need them. Meaty bones and organ meat is sufficient to meet all of their nutritional needs. I wouldn't take her to a vet at all. You are just wasting your money in my opinion. If I were you I would do a consultation with Nora Lenz, she is a raw food teacher that is an expert on feeding dogs and cats raw. I've had several consultations with her over the years (both for myself and my pets, who are all raw) and she is awesome. You can contact her via her website: www.rawschool.com

Blessings,

Audrey
www.rawhealing.com

[Eva]

I found a lot of success on raw for my dog, and I have some other really good info. I don't know if it's okay to post, so you can email me if you're interested. :)

[sbaker]

thanks...i have put her on half raw half dry food i got from petco called blue moon or something..grain free, all natural, $30 for a small bag and so on. id love to do all raw, its hard on my schedule though:) im not sure if she had arthritis or just a sore shoulder that our foster dog kept hurting, because we adopted him out and she hasnt been limping as much anymore. she is however showing signs of age in the lat few months she never had before! it makes me sad, ill let you know if it improves:)

[lafsalot]

Don't suppose you would reconsider an all raw diet - it really is very helpful for arthritic canines, and has worked wonders for my 17 year old senior. Thing is, it's bone and cartiledge are the natural source of glucosamine and chondroitin. If an all raw diet is totally out of the question, then you might want to supplement.

Other complimentary Therapies:

*trigger point therapy - particularly helpful for when a dog is walking abnormally after a bone or joint injury.

*massage

*vitamin C - good for reducing the viscosity of joint fluid and it's antitoxidants are said to reduce damage in osteoarthritis (I give this to my dogs, along with msm)

*Ice packs

*Anti-inflammatories ie - angelica root and great celandine

*Anti-rheumatics include: celery seed, meadosweet, and comfrey leaf

Haven't tried this one, but others have sworn by rhus tox.

I know there is another supplement that others swear by, but don't recall the name. I'll see if I can't find it for you, and get back to you later.

Sending healing ((((vibes)))) your little guy's way ~ Cathy

[diali36]

See my post in What is good for you Not for dogs. Get Black currant Oil in capsules and give 2 per day for joint problems. I really would watch the raw meat I don't think it's a good idea too many problems with the meat supply and there is also the problem with supporting that industry. Bulldogs are prone to these problems, just look at the way they are built! But if you get some weight off her and start with the Black currant oil you will see improvment. It takes at least 3-4 weeks to get enough to see a difference but keep with it. Purtain Pride online is a great source.